from there, he spoke with benjamin netanyahu and mohamed morsi about ongoing fighting in ga gaza. and hostess isn't liquidating just yet. they'll be in mediation to work out differences. back to "hardball." >>> we're back. according to some reports, the president could name a successor to hillary clinton as early as next week. i think it could come this week. it's a decision fraught with risk. "the new york times" reported yesterday that the white house aides say the president's favored candidate is susan rice, the current ambassador to the u.n. but republicans like senator john mccain and lindsey graham have threatened to filibuster her nomination thanks to her appearances on tv following the benghazi attacks. would the president risk starting off his second term with a decision that would likely lead to a bitter confrontation fight? richard wolffe is vice president and executive editor of msnbc.com. he's also an msnbc political analyst. and jay newton-small is a diplomatic correspondent for "time." richard, i want to get your sense of the president's thinking here. now, i think